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| C E R R O N E |
| Born in Paris in 1952, Jean-Marc Cerrone was the youngest of three children of a small shoe manufacturer. Cerrone always heard music in his head, a beat, a rhythm. "I was always being kept after school because I used to snap on my desk with a ruler to the music I imagined. At home, it was the same thing, except with forks on the dinner table. My father finally bought me a small drum; then a second one; a bigger set, and so on" recalled Cerrone.
Playing the drums at twelve and working with local groups by fourteen, at seventeen he had already convinced Gilbert Trigano to start using rock bands for his resort chain, The Club Med. At eighteen, after getting his diploma as a hairdresser, he decided that he rather do music than hair. His band, Kongas, was regularly booked at the Papagayo Club in St. Tropez on the French Riviera. During this period, label owner and producer Eddie Barclay heard Cerrone and his band and signed them to record their first record. The song "Boom" was a minor hit and the group toured Europe, Japan and Africa. The exposure broadened his musical concepts and gave him an opportunity to perform his own material. After three years, due to extreme personal conflicts, Cerrone left the group. He then pursued work as a studio musician and found it disappointing and briefly left music as a performer. The desire for a stable existence led him to open two record stores called "Import Records." He spent the next year selling American records to eager French music lovers, all the while developing his own ideas about where music was heading and how he could profit from it. When he felt the time was right, he put in eight hard months in the studio, personally financed, writing, producing, arranging, recording what was to become his triumphant disco debut. When French record companies passed on it he decided to press 20,000 copies himself and sell them through his store. He personally promoted them to D.J.'s in the club scene and even asked his friends to buy copies. When the record created a buzz in the club scene he sold-out his entire pressing. Eventually it reached the ears of a Cotillion Records executive who pursued Cerrone and signed a distribution deal with him for the American based Atlantic Records subsidiary. "Love In 'C' Minor" was officially released in February of 1977 and quickly shot up the charts. It stalled at number three on Record World and Billboard's charts, but remained there for over two months and eventually sold over 3 million copies worldwide. By this time his second album had already been recorded and was released on the heels of his debut success. "Cerrone's Paradise" followed his formula and gained favor among American club goers. Sales were not as brisk as his first, but it still enjoyed a modest chart run. Finishing out a banner year with the release of "Cerrone 3: Supernature" he was poised for his greatest success. The title track and the breakout "Give Me Love" propelled sales to eight million worldwide. At 1978's Billboard Disco Forum 4 he swept the awards, prompting some to call it the "Cerrone Show." He took home an amazing six awards, "Disco Artist Of The Year," "Male Disco Artist Of The Year," "Disco Composer Of The Year," "Disco Producer Of The Year," "Disco Arranger Of The Year," and "Disco Instrumentalist Of The Year." Without question, "Supernature" was a tough act to follow, and Cerrone knew better than to try to turn his fourth album into Supernature: Part II. 1978's "Cerrone 4: The Golden Touch" is the lush Euro-disco album that fans of "Love in C Minor" and "Cerrone's Paradise" were hoping for — but with a twist. The lyrics aren't entirely escapist; "Je Suis Music" addresses sociopolitical concerns while winning the listener over with its irresistible groove. And on "Look For Love" and "Music Of Life," Cerrone provides a type of uplifting, motivational message. A diverse LP from 1979, "Cerrone 5: Angelina" finds the Parisian branching out into pop/rock without abandoning Eurodisco completely. Unfortunately, "Angelina" marked the first time a Cerrone album was uneven and disappointing. The glossy "Call Me Tonight," which features vocalist Michelle Aller, is a Eurodisco jewel, but "Living On Love" sounds mechanical and stiff; and the tunes that combine disco and rock elements are fairly catchy but far from remarkable. "Rock Me," in fact, ends up sounding like a poor person's version of Donna Summer's "Hot Stuff." Also in 1979, Malligator released a live Cerrone album in France. Recorded at the Paris Pavillion on December 1-2, 1978, this two-LP set wasn't a major club hit. But for Cerrone's more devoted fans, "In Concert" serves as a generally pleasing document of what he could do on stage with a live band. You can't expect the live Cerrone to sound exactly like the Cerrone of the studio, and sure enough, live performances of his hits have a harder, grittier edge than the studio versions. Songs which were quite lush in the studio, become tougher and more rock-influenced on stage. By 1980 disco was dying and Cerrone's music was losing it's appeal, he seemed to be lost as to what direction he should go with it. "Cerrone 6" was his most commercially unappealing record to date, audiences and dancers alike couldn't get with his program. A 12" single of "Happiness Pill" didn't cure this ailing albums uneveness. 1981 saw some relief with the release of "Cerrone 7." Smartly recruiting a young, and yet-to-be discovered as a solo vocalist, Jocelyn Brown to bring life to this offering. "Hooked On You," thanks to her searing vocals, brought Cerrone back to the clubs and dance floors that he once dominated. For "Cerrone 8: Back Track" Cerrone seems to have regained his musical footing and bounced back with stunning results. This 1982 gem featured the Top Ten title track as well as "Supernature 2" and "Trippin' On The Moon," which also became a hit for Claudja Barry. Later that year "Cerrone 9: Your Love Survived" was released. A double album, one album of new material and one album of remixes featuring "Call Me Tonight," "Give Me Love" and "Look For Love" put Cerrone back in the money and once again earned him worldwide recognition. 12" singles of "Club Underworld" and "Where Are You Now" continued his streak of good fortune as 1984's "Cerrone 10: Where Are You Now" climbed the charts. Released in France in 1985, "Cerrone 11: The Collector" is an uneven LP that ranges from futuristic Euro-dance music to commercial pop/rock. All of side one is devoted to the conceptual, three-part title track, which is arguably the most "Supernature"-sounding thing Cerrone had recorded since "Supernature." Like "Supernature," "The Collector" is full of Kraftwerk-minded synthesizers and has a sci-fi theme; unfortunately, the piece ends up sounding like a poor person's "Supernature." Employing various female singers, Cerrone fares somewhat better on side two, which contains three pleasant, if unremarkable, pop/rock tunes: "Forever," "Shame on You," and "Where You Are." After a remarkable five year absence Cerrone bounced back with 1990's "Way In." This collection featured one of my all-time favorite songs, the 12" single of "Never Let A Day Go By." The album featured a silver-haired Cerrone looking his most natural ever. The songs on this release were more even and often reminiscent of the 1970's Cerrone we all knew and loved. 1992, 1993 and 1996 saw the releases of "Dream," "X-XEX" and "Human Nature" respectively. All were conceptual albums that explored several musical genres from rap to electronica with varying degrees of success. The 1996 release of "The Best Of Cerrone" saw the days most popular remixers overhaul the Cerrone catalogue for a whole new generation. Featuring the talents of Frankie Knuckles, PWL, Danny Tenaglia and David Morales among others, sales were once again favorable. This compact disc marked his 20th anniversary of recording, 2001 saw the release of "Cerrone By Bob Sinclair" which features the old and the new, remixes and hits. Cerrone collaborates with Sinclair, Liquid People, Modjo and more. And in 2002 he released the "Hysteria" album marking his 16th original release. The results are stunning and this should renew interest in a true disco icon and garner a new legion of fans. It's inspiring to see that after 28 years Cerrone and dance music are both still going strong. |
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